Sapphire Stones

''What does sexist mean?'' -Chuck, 2023

It's been hours. Gally and I haven't spoken a word to each other in hours. We've both just been sitting in our corners waiting for Minho to bail us out in silence.

He's tapping his foot on the stone. My fingernails are digging into the skin of my palms.

"Stop it." I snap, glaring at a spot to the left of him.

"Stop what?" He asks, tilting his head. "I didn't do anything."

"Stop tapping your fucking foot on the fucking ground. It's annoying."

"Oh, you mean this?" He asks, tapping his foot even louder on the stone. I look over at him, immediately wanting to punch that stupid smirk off his face.

"I will punch the shit out of you." I growl. He's still smirking.

"You couldn't hit me if you tried." He says, leaning forward slightly.

"Wanna bet, dickhead?" I narrow my eyes at him, my hands tightening into fists once again. Just before Gally can respond, I hear a series of clicking sounds and a creaking of a door opening. 

I look up, my eyes meeting the dark brown ones of Newt.

"Time's up." He says, holding out a hand for me. I stand up, grabbing his outstretched hand and allowing him to pull me out of the Slammer.

Gally brushes Newt away, lifting himself out of the Slammer and brushing off his pants when he stands up.

None of us move. I glare at Gally. Gally glares back. Newt stands in the middle, arms crossed, looking between the two of us once again.

"So are we just gonna stand here like idiots or are we gonna go eat some bloody food?" He asks, breaking the silence between the three of us.

Gally ignores him, starting forward, but not before he knocks his arm into my shoulder. I stumble sideways before regaining my balance.

"Pathetic." He mutters so that only I can hear it.

"You bitch!" I screech, about to launch forward at him before Newt catches me, holding me back. The blonde is hugging me by the waist tightly, restraining me from attacking Gally.

"Let it go." He says in a soothing voice, watching as Gally walks away. "He's not worth it."

I finally calm down and allow Newt to let me go.

"Sorry, Newton. He's just so..." I trail off, running a hand through my hair as I try to search for a word.

"Irritating? Aggravating? Stubborn? Annoying?"

"All of the above." I mutter, rubbing my tired eyes.

"Hungry?" Newt asks, holding out his arm.

"Starving." I reply, linking my arm with his. Newt leads me to the picnic tables, sitting down next to Minho at our usual table. Ben sits next to me, Chuck on the other side. Gally's nowhere to be seen.

"What happened earlier?" Chuck asks as I pick at the food in front of me. "With Gally, I mean?"

At the mention of his name, my appetite disappears, instead being replaced by a sick feeling in the pit of my stomach.

"Just a slight disagreement, Chuckie."

"It didn't sound like a slight disagreement. It sounded like a fight." He says, biting into a piece of chicken.

"It's none of your concern. Gally and I are fine, okay?" I assure him. But we're not fine. Not after what he said to me.

Just then, I see him sitting at a table with his friends. He's smiling. He's laughing. He looks happy. How can he be so happy after what he said? How can he act like nothing happened?

We meet eyes for only a second and I swear I see the smile falter, but the moment passes. He's back to being happy.

"Venus?" Ben asks, nudging me. 

"Yeah?" I ask, shaking my head in order to get out of my trance.

"You alright? You look a little distracted."

"Oh, I'm good. Dandy as a daisy." I reply, averting my gaze from him. "So, what are we talking about?"

"The Greenie." Minho says, shrugging. Right before he can add on to his sentence, someone sits down next to Newt. The Greenie. "Speaking of, here he is."

"I'm Cody." The boy says, sticking out his hand. I'm only now noticing how green his eyes are. Pale emerald.

I shake his hand, hesitating for just a moment.

"Venus." I reply, taking in the boys features. Dark brown hair, tan skin, sharp jaw, and those eyes. Those bright, pale eyes. It's as if he's staring into my soul. "So, you're the Greenie?"

"I guess so." He says.

"What jobs have you tried out so far?" Ben asks, looking up from his food.

"So far, Slicer, Cook, Trackhoe, and Sloppers." Cody replies. "I wasn't good at any of them." He adds, his cheeks tinted with a light red.

"Which is practically impossible because usually the people who suck at all the jobs are the Sloppers!" Chuck adds, a grin on his face. I elbow the kid in the ribs, earning a grunt of pain from him. "What the shuck was that for?!"

I don't respond. Instead, I turn to the Greenie. "That's alright, Cody. I'm sure you'll find a job. I was the same way when I first came up."

"But aren't you a Medjack or something?"

"Only because it was less sexist than putting me in the kitchens." I reply with a smile. Ben and Minho both let out snorts.

"What does sexist mean?" Chuck asks, knitting his eyebrows together in confusion. I ruffle his light brown curls slightly, grinning at him.

"You have much to learn, Chuckie." The boy laughs, shying away from me. The Greenie just stares at me, jaw slightly dropped. "What? You're staring at me like you've just seen a ghost." I say, chuckling awkwardly.

"No, it's just..." He starts before trailing off.

"Just what?" I ask. Minho nudges his shoulder, causing the Greenie to shake out of his trance.

"Nothing. Nothing at all." He says quickly, his face reddening once more. I shake my head, looking over again at Gally. 

The Builder quickly snaps his head away from me so that I can't see his face, but I could've sworn I saw the hint of a smile on his face.